THE Scotland boss paid tribute to his players after a commanding home win over Croatia and says that his players should be 'proud of the way they have turned everything around'.

Gordon Strachan celebrates last night: "The players have taken a few knocks, mentally and physically, but they have got better." (Photo: Alan Rennie/Universal News and Sport (Scotland))

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GORDON STRACHAN last night passed all the credit on to his Scotland players for ending their World Cup qualifying campaign on a high by beating Croatia.

It was a result that left Croatia stunned with coach Igor Stimac offering his resignation after the final whistle at Hampden.

Stimac watched goals from Robert Snodgrass and Steven Naismith secure Scotland’s second win over his side in five months and it was too much for him to bear.

In stark contrast Strachan watched Scotland win for the third time in their last four games and then heaped the praise on to his players.

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Looking back on the night his side lost 2-1 at home to Wales and Snodgrass was sent off, he said: “It’s a big difference from my first match against Wales. Snodgrass did well tonight but his mate Naisy was terrific.

“Steven’s not the greatest player in the world but he makes his mark and it was good to see him score.”

But while the crowd rediscovered their fervour, Strachan did his best to play down the importance of what he had seen.

He said: “It’s a nice way to finish the week. But I think of it as another game and not the end of a World Cup campaign.

“The result is of no importance whatsoever but it makes you happy.

“It’s a confidence thing. The players have taken a few knocks, mentally and physically, but they have got better.”

The final Group A table will show a campaign that ended in failure but it died with its boots on.

And Strachan’s side buried it with full military honours at Hampden while ending a two-year failure to win a match there.

The victory over Croatia was, compared to the damp squibs that had gone before at home, a 21-gun salute to honour the players and management who had restored a nation’s pride in its team.

And Strachan, the architect of the restoration work done on Scotland’s reputation, appreciated the galvanising effect it had on the fans to see Scotland hang on to a 60-year record of never going through a qualification campaign without a home win.

Last night they kept the record intact and Strachan said: “When you’re national team manager that’s what you want to do, make the nation happy.

“But it’s the players who have turned everything round and they can be proud of themselves.

“Now it’s a long wait until our next competitive match at the start of the qualifiers for the Euro Championship finals in France in 2016 but I’m all right with that.”

A one-time fortress that had turned into a seemingly derelict building was returned to its former state on the back of goals from Snodgrass and Naismith.

The former celebrated the birth of his daughter Leonie this week but his manager didn’t allow the Norwich player to grab any extra credit for joining the squad so quickly.

Strachan added: “I think you’ll find his partner did all the work.”

There was no cause for celebration so far as Stimac was concerned. Not even a place in the World Cup play-offs allowed him any respite from gloom.

He said: “I offered my resignation to the president of the Croatian Football Federation, Davor Suker, and he will have a meeting to decide whether to accept it.

“It was a bad defeat against Scotland. I have to take responsibility.

“You have Gordon as the right man in the right place at the right time.

“But the Croatian fans have not been happy since we won the first game of the campaign. If they want me to resign, I will go.”